Why do I encourage my Bible students to study Hebrew?
Let us discover more about the first letter ALEPH and the reason may become self-evident.
Take for example the statement: “GOD IS TRUTH” ( Isaiah 65:16 )
In the Greek way of thinking ( upon which Western education is built ) truth is found in our relationship between our thinking and the reality of the world around us. Because it focuses on ME, the definition of truth is relative i.e. it changes depending on my viewpoint.
But the Hebrew mindset is different. It focuses on God. In our example, EMET is the Hebrew word for truth. It is spelt from right to left with 3 letters:
1. Aleph = A ( not E )
2. Mem = M
3. Tav = T
Aleph ( past ) is the first letter of the Hebrew Alphabet, Mem ( present ) the middle and Tav the last ( future ). EMET is thus an eternal quality of God Himself.
Truth thus begins with an awareness of God’s timelessness. And pictorially divine wisdom ( Aleph=God ) comes from the fountain of life ( Mem= water ) that
never dries up ( Tav = eternal ).
What is TRUTH then? It is not what I think but what God thinks that becomes the TRUTH.
Father God, the study of Hebrew enables me to spend time to know who You are and what is on Your heart. For the TRUTH can only be seen by You from the beginning ( Aleph), present ( Mem ) and end (Tav). And such TRUTH is only found in You as You present it to us in Your Word. As we put our faith in Your Son as our Shepherd King, we know we can trust Him to lead us from here to eternity for He said He is ” the way, the TRUTH, and the life” ( John 14:6-7 ).
